Warhammer 40K: Dark Heresy — Everything We Know

Aside from helping us detach from reality, video games offer an amazing platform where we experience lives we can’t possibly pick up in the real world. The role-playing gaming genre especially fulfills this role by allowing you to embody many different characters in different settings, take on quests, and engage in intense combat. Warhammer 40K: Dark Heresy is an upcoming CRPG whose announcement caused quite a stir among gamers. Being an improvement on the 2008 Dark Heresy, players can expect a lot more fun and excitement with this new title. Below, we highlight everything we know about this game so far.

What is Warhammer 40K: Dark Heresy?

The game is a tabletop RPG match where players embody the role of an acolyte of the Inquisition. Players who are tasked with investigating the mysterious Tyrant Star in the Calixis Sector. The star is a dark stellar anomaly that randomly appears in different locations. Its appearance foretells a planet’s doom. Aside from that, the game demands careful planning and extreme efficiency to reap its rewards.

To succeed, you should target the enemy’s weak points and keep each party member’s morale high. That ensures that all their potential is effectively maximized on the battlefield. Additionally, the title contains complex systems that increase its immersive experience, making each decision made influence the story’s outcome, even in battle.

Story

Dark Heresy follows the narrative of an Inquisitor in the grim darkness of the far future. The protagonist begins as an acolyte, where he investigates heresy. As they progress, they go on to command a diverse warband and shape the fate of their world that hangs in a dangerous balance between injustice, damnation, and salvation.

Each warband is different, ranging from loyal Imperial subjects to evil mercenaries. Each one also offers unique gameplay and perspective and comes with its own story and voiced dialogues.

The game is directed by player choices, where every choice made creates the future of the Calixis Sector. The story takes players on an in-depth journey revealing the secrets of the Inquisition. It is portrayed as an organization that commands a huge force with power, bureaucracy, and deep inner conflicts. As the Inquisitor, players are required to protect the Imperium from all sorts of peril, including the taint of Denis, betrayal from the heretics, or the scourge of the mutants.

They can employ any means necessary to ensure their mission is completed. As you play, you get to uncover hidden plots, interrogate suspects, and piece together conspiracies, all in the name of salvation. Aside from that, you get to explore hidden, rotting places where other people would not dare set foot in. Carry out the Emperor’s will in a hopeless world, explore the mysteries of the Tyrant Star, and conquer the darkness ushered in by the Noctis Aeterna.

Gameplay

Players take on the role of a group of Acolytes working for an Inquisitor. In the RPG game, they are sent on several missions. Based on the assigned mission, players can engage in investigations, combat, intrigue, or several other genres. Therefore, you can tailor your campaign to suit the group you pick out. Furthermore, most missions revolve around uncovering heresies or issues related to them. But the vastness of the game includes many other missions, such as killing off dangerous gangs, collecting evidence to expose corruption, or destroying rogue psykers.

Other than that, the title has in-depth combat mechanics expressed through various characters and classes. You can use a turn-based system to plan the best way to approach any dangerous situation with the many abilities and weapons available to help you during fights. The new game also introduces a Morale system over the Rogue Trader’s Momentum. Players will be required to manage their party’s morale, which is vital in battle as it boosts the team’s performance. 

Development

The developers of the acclaimed Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader, Owlcat Games, have announced their new upcoming title, Dark Heresy. The game was announced during the Games Workshop’s annual Skulls reveal show that occurred recently. So far, news of the game has stirred up quite the excitement in the gaming community, with players itching to get their hands on the game upon its debut. The title promises to be an amazing adventure that will leave a lasting imprint on those who interact with it.

Warhammer 40K: Dark Heresy is based on the 2008 game Dark Heresy. The new game features deep reactivity with countless variations that enhance its experience. Additionally, the Inquisitor’s path is filled with challenges, and the decisions you’ll have to make will test you to the limit. However, the choice to embrace the puritanical mandate of the Emperor or veer off on a more pragmatic or radical approach rests in your hands. 

Trailer

Dark Heresy is set in a variety of worlds, including nice cities, death worlds, garden planets, and forge worlds, among others. The regions featured in the game create a tone and types of missions that players get to immerse themselves in. However, the main trilogy unfolds in a specific region of space that is crawling with danger and complex mysteries. Its official trailer reveals a bit of what players can expect in the gameplay of the title. 

It showcases battles with the carnivorous xenos, the Root, who are known members of the Tau Empire. These carnivores are set at the forefront of the warriors during battle. Additionally, the trailer showcases the forces of Chaos that appeared as a fire-breathing, deformed mutant and a Night Lord Space Marine. Night Lords in the story are masters of fear and pain. They are considered one of the major enemies in the narrative. 

Release Date and Platforms

Developers Owlcat Games announced their new title, Dark Heresy, during the Games Workshop’s annual Skulls show held this year. The title is set to release on PC via Steam, GOG, and Epic Games Store. It will also debut on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and S. However, a specific release date or year has yet to be mentioned.